Oman's Research and Innovation Organization (RIA), in collaboration with Sultan Qaboos University (SQU), today announced the start of registration for the second cohort of the "Itlaq" startup accelerator program. This program is designed to accelerate and facilitate the growth of Omani startups that provide solutions with national and regional impacts.
Accelerator Program Details
This program, which includes an intensive six-month period, will select 10 Omani startups and empower them to elevate their projects to a stage of investment readiness and entry into new markets. The second cohort focuses on six vital sectors including water, environment, energy, food, biotechnology, and health.
Program Support for Startups
The accelerator program provides a comprehensive plan to support startups, which includes various stages from promising ideas to investment readiness and market development. This includes interactive workshops on entrepreneurship and prototyping, strategic guidance on technology transformation and intellectual property protection, and one-on-one consulting sessions with local and international experts. Opportunities for expansion through strong investment networks will also be explored.
The first cohort of this accelerator received 110 applications, resulting in the selection of 10 Omani startups. Of these, 4 startups have managed to secure investments from local funds totaling 160,000 Omani Rials.
The startups that successfully received investment include the "Tajir" platform for managing car rentals, the "AR Technology" initiative focusing on the Internet of Things (IoT), the "Darab" platform for optimizing delivery operations, and the "Ai Algo" startup specializing in data preparation for artificial intelligence (AI).
The Ministry of Higher Education, Research, and Innovation invites interested entrepreneurs to visit the program's website for registration details.
